Refrigerator, Freezer, Storage Container and Cold Storage

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a refrigerator and others, and in particular, purports to achieve a refrigerator, freezer, storage container, and cold storage which preserve the freshness of foods using the vacuum technology. 
     An industrial refrigerator-freezer which has one or a plurality of storages and cooling means for cooling these storages comprise a hermetically sealed containers  11  installed inside the storage to refrigerate foods, exhaust means comprising an exhaust pump  19 , exhaust duct  20  and others to individually exhaust air in the hermetically sealed containers  11 , and a switching means installed to an operation panel  15  to turn on/off the exhaust means.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a refrigerator, freezer, storagecontainer, and cold storage, and specifically, to a refrigerator,freezer, storage container, and cold storage which preserve thefreshness of foods using the vacuum technology.

2. Background Art

Conventional refrigerator-freezers have a primary interest in coolingthe inside and it is hard to say that sufficient measures have notalways been taken to maintain freshness and quality of foods to becooled, refrigerated, or frozen. For example, vegetables, fruits, andother foodstuff breathe on their surfaces, and by the breathing, theyage and lose freshness, and eventually, wither or wilt. However, whenthey are stored at low temperature, the breathing rate lowers, forexample, when the ambient temperature lowers from 15° C. to 0° C., thebreathing rate lowers to ⅓ to ⅕, and the freshness can be maintained fora long time. However, fruit vegetables such as cucumbers and tomatoesare okay to be refrigerated as they are but in the case of leafvegetables such as cabbages and Chinese cabbages, air contained betweenleaves play a role of heat insulator, causing a problem that it takesabout 10 hours to cool the inside when they are refrigerated as theyare. However, if temperature is lowered to below 0° C. and they arerapidly cooled, ice may adhere to the leaf surfaces because of theeffect of ambient moisture taken in when a door is opened or closed orthe cell fluid inside the leaf cell is frozen, and freshness isconversely lost excessively. In addition, even in the case of foodstuffsuch as thinly sliced raw fish (sashimi) and eels broiled without anyseasoning, if ice adheres to the surface, the cell liquid inside thecell is frozen, or the foodstuff is oxidized, the surface is discoloredand the foodstuff looks bad and lose flavor.

Hitherto, this kind of problem was met by varying the refrigeratorinside temperature in accord with the foodstuff to berefrigerated/frozen or by adjusting temperature stepwise. However, it istroublesome and increases cost to subtly adjust temperature for eachfoodstuff to be stored. In addition, temperature control alone cannotcompletely prevent ice accretion to the food surface or freeze of cellliquid.

Furthermore, methods, etc. to store for a long time with food freshnessmaintained by generating the electric field by static electricity in therefrigerator have been reported. The electric field by staticelectricity acts on the moisture of the foodstuff in the refrigeratorand fractionates water clusters. By this, freshness of meats and fisheryproducts can be maintained and vegetables and fruits do not have to losefreshness over a long period of time. However, this method has severalproblems, including those that it is difficult to maintain the stableelectric field because of moisture content, dew condensation, iceformation, etc. inside the refrigerator, and high-voltage power supplyis required.

On the other hand, it is known that some bio-ceramics includingtourmaline, zirconium, and others generate negative ionssemi-permanently. In addition, it is also known that water clusters arefractionated by negative ions.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a refrigerator-freezer which has one or aplurality of storages and a cooling means for cooling the storages,comprising hermetically sealed containers installed inside the storagesto store foods to be refrigerated/frozen, an exhaust means forindividually discharge exhaust of the hermetically sealed containers,and a switching means for turning ON/OFF the exhaust means.

By this, it is possible to individually exhaust hermetically sealedcontainers in storages and vegetables, fruits, and other foodstuff canbe stored with the freshness preserved more effectively and for a longertime than simple refrigeration or freezing.

The present invention is characterized in that in therefrigerator-freezer, a vacuum breaking means for breaking the vacuumcondition after discharging exhaust by the exhaust means is provided forthe hermetically sealed containers.

By this, it is possible to easily open and close the hermetically sealedcontainers under vacuum and in the refrigerated state.

The present invention is characterized in that the refrigerator-freezerhas an open-close detection means for detecting open-close of containerdoor section provided to the hermetically sealed containers.

Because by this, it is possible to discharge exhaust after making surethe container door section is open or closed, there is no need to carryout unnecessary exhaust discharging.

The present invention is characterized in that the refrigerator-freezerfurther comprises a temperature detection means for detectingtemperature inside the hermetically sealed container, wherein theexhaust means discharges exhaust after the temperature detection meansdetects that the temperature inside the hermetically sealed containerlowers to the specified value.

By this, in the event that the temperature inside the hermeticallysealed container is high, temperature inside the container can belowered by convection of air inside and can be efficiently cooled.

The present invention is characterized in that a bio-ceramic elementwhich has bioactivity for generating negative ions is located inside thehermetically sealed container.

By this, it is possible to prevent the foodstuff inside the hermeticallysealed container from being oxidized and the flavor from being impairedby the effects of negative ions which the bio-ceramic generates.Furthermore, effects of suppressing odor generated by the foodstuffinside the hermetically sealed container are produced, too. Becausegeneration of negative ions of the bio-ceramic is semi-permanent, theeffects continue once it is installed.

The present invention also provides a refrigerator-freezer which has aplurality of storages and a cooling means for cooling the storages,comprising hermetically sealed containers installed inside the storagesto store foods to be refrigerated and frozen, connection ends mounted tothe storages, exhaust ducts that can be connected to the hermeticallysealed containers by the connection ends, a common exhaust means fordischarging exhaust of the hermetically sealed containers connected tothe exhaust duct via the connection ends by discharging exhaust insidethe exhaust duct, and an operating device for operating connectionsbetween the hermetically sealed containers and the exhaust duct.

Because by this, the refrigerator can keep the hermetically sealedcontainer in the vacuum condition by the common exhaust means and canprevent the food stuff from coming in contact with air, it is possibleto achieve a refrigerator-freezer which can maintain the foodstufffreshness for a long time by preventing oxidation of the foodstuff andice formation on the foodstuff surface.

The present invention is also characterized in that in therefrigerator-freezer, the operating means does not open the connectionbetween the hermetically sealed containers and the exhaust duct when thehermetically sealed containers are not connected to the connection endsof the exhaust duct.

Because by this, exhaust is not discharged from the exhaust duct unlessit is checked that the hermetically sealed container is connected to theexhaust duct, there is no fear of discharging unnecessary exhaust.

The present invention is also characterized in that therefrigerator-freezer further comprises a temperature detection means fordetecting the temperature inside the hermetically sealed containerwherein the operating means opens the connection between thehermetically sealed containers and the exhaust duct after detecting thatthe temperature inside the hermetically sealed container lowers to thespecified value.

By this, in the event that the temperature inside the hermeticallysealed container is high, temperature inside the container can belowered by convection of air inside and can be efficiently cooled.

The present invention is also characterized in that therefrigerator-freezer has a vacuum breaking means for breaking the vacuumcondition after exhaust by the exhaust means is mounted to thehermetically sealed containers.

By this, it is possible to easily open and close the hermetically sealedcontainer under vacuum and in the refrigerated condition.

The present invention is also characterized in that therefrigerator-freezer has a bio-ceramic element which has bioactivity togenerate negative ions is located inside the hermetically sealedcontainers.

By this, it is possible to prevent the foodstuff inside the hermeticallysealed container from being oxidized and the flavor from being impairedby the effects of negative ions which the bio-ceramic generates.Furthermore, effects of suppressing odor generated by the foodstuffinside the hermetically sealed container are produced, too. Becausegeneration of negative ions of the bio-ceramic is semi-permanent, theeffects continue once it is installed.

The present invention also provides a refrigerator-freezer which has oneor a plurality of storages and a cooling means for cooling the storages,which are formed into a hermetically sealed construction, and isequipped with an exhaust means for discharging exhaust of the storagesof the hermetically sealed construction.

By this, it is possible to achieve a refrigerator-freezer which canmaintain the foodstuff freshness for a long time by preventing oxidationof the foodstuff and ice formation on the foodstuff surface in thevacuum condition by hermetically sealing the storage and preventing thefoodstuff from coming in contact with air.

The present invention is also characterized in that therefrigerator-freezer has a vacuum breaking means for breaking the vacuumcondition after the exhaust means discharges exhaust equipped to thestorage.

By this, it is possible to easily open and close the storage undervacuum and in the refrigerated condition.

The present invention is also characterized in that therefrigerator-freezer has the exhaust means which waits until thetemperature inside the storages lowers to the specified temperature andcarries out the exhaust operation.

By this, in the event that the temperature inside the storage is high,temperature inside the storage can be lowered by convection of airinside and can be efficiently cooled.

The present invention is also characterized in that therefrigerator-freezer has an open-close detection means for detecting theopen-close of the storage door, which is installed to the storage.

Because by this, exhaust can be discharged by making sure the storagedoor is open or closed, there is no fear of discharging unnecessaryexhaust.

The present invention is also characterized in that therefrigerator-freezer has the cooling means which has a plurality of heatexchangers inside the storage.

By this, it is possible to effectively cool even when exhaust takesplace and at the same time to keep the humidity of the storage.

The present invention is characterized in that the refrigerator-freezerhas a bio-ceramic element which has bioactivity to generate negativeions located inside the storage.

By this, it is possible to prevent the foodstuff inside the storage frombeing oxidized and the flavor from being impaired by the effects ofnegative ions which the bio-ceramic generates. Furthermore, effects ofsuppressing odor generated by the foodstuff inside the storage areproduced, too. Because generation of negative ions of the bio-ceramic issemi-permanent, the effects continue once it is installed.

The present invention provides a storage container used for storingreserves in refrigerator-freezer which comprises a hermetically sealingmeans for hermetically sealing the storage containers, an exhaust meansfor individually discharging exhaust of the storage containers, and aswitching means for turning ON/OFF the exhaust means.

Because by this, the cold storage can keep the storage containerhermetically sealed in the vacuum condition and can prevent the foodstuff from coming in contact with air, it is possible to achieve a coldstorage which can maintain the foodstuff freshness for a long time bypreventing oxidation of the foodstuff and ice formation on the foodstuffsurface.

The present invention is characterized in that the storage container hasa vacuum breaking means for breaking the vacuum condition after exhaustis discharged by the exhaust means equipped to the storage containers.

By this, it is possible to easily open and close the storage containerunder vacuum and in the refrigerated condition.

The present invention is characterized in that the storage container hasa bio-ceramic element which has bioactivity to generate negative ionslocated inside the storage containers.

By this, it is possible to prevent the foodstuff inside the storagecontainer from being oxidized and the flavor from being impaired by theeffects of negative ions which the bio-ceramic generates. Furthermore,effects of suppressing odor generated by the foodstuff inside thecontainer are produced, too. Because generation of negative ions of thebio-ceramic is semi-permanent, the effects continue once it isinstalled.

The present invention provides a cold storage which has a freezercompartment that can refrigerate and store preserves in the warehousewhich comprises a hermetically sealing means for hermetically sealingthe freezer compartment, an exhaust means for individually dischargingexhaust of the freezer compartment, and a switching means for turningON/OFF the exhaust means.

Because by this, the cold storage can keep the freezer in the vacuumcondition and can prevent the food stuff from coming in contact withair, it is possible to achieve a cold storage which can maintain thefoodstuff freshness for a long time by preventing oxidation of thefoodstuff and ice formation on the foodstuff surface.

The present invention is also characterized in that the cold storage hasa vacuum breaking means for breaking the vacuum condition after exhaustis discharged by the exhaust means equipped to the freezer compartment.

By this, it is possible to easily open and close the freezer compartmentunder vacuum and in the refrigerated condition.

The present invention is also characterized in that the cold storage hasa bio-ceramic element which has bioactivity to generate negative ionslocated inside the freezer compartment.

By this, it is possible to prevent the foodstuff inside the freezercompartment from being oxidized and the flavor from being impaired bythe effects of negative ions which the bio-ceramic generates.Furthermore, effects of suppressing odor generated by the foodstuffinside the freezer compartment are produced, too. Because generation ofnegative ions of the bio-ceramic is semi-permanent, the effects continueonce it is installed.

The present invention is also characterized in that the storagecontainer has a temperature sensor for detecting the existence of humansor living organisms by temperature mounted inside the freezercompartment.

By this, it is possible to avoid danger of humans and living organismsfrom being confined in the freezer compartment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a cross sectional view of one embodiment of the industrialrefrigerator according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of the other embodiment of theindustrial refrigerator-freezer according to the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of another embodiment of the industrialrefrigerator-freezer according to the present invention;

FIG. 4; and

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the other embodiment of thehousehold refrigerator-freezer according to the present invention.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Referring now to the drawings, embodiments of the present invention willbe described in detail hereinafter.

FIG. 1 is a cross sectional view of one embodiment of the industrialrefrigerator-freezer 10 according to the present invention.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 11 denotes a hermetically sealed container,12 a housing covering, 13 an heat insulator, 14 a door, 15 an operationpanel, 16 a heat exchanger, 17 a cold air circulating fan, 18 acompressor, 19 an exhaust pump, 20 an exhaust duct, 21 shelves catch, 22shelf board, 23, packing, and 24 vacuum breaker handle.

In keeping with FIG. 1, operation of the industrial refrigerator-freezer10 of the present invention will be described.

The present industrial refrigerator-freezer 10 is formed into a box bythe housing covering 12 comprising metal sheets, etc. and the heatinsulator 13 for cold insulation to back the housing covering. Thecompressor 18 is driven by a motor not illustrated and when thecompressor 18 is operated, steam of a refrigerant which is evaporated bythe heat exchanger 16 and becomes low temperature and low pressure issucked into the compressor 18 and compressed, and becomes steam attemperature considerably higher than room temperature. This steam isallowed to pass a condenser not illustrated located outside theindustrial refrigerator-freezer 10 and to discharge heat. Then, thesteam is liquefied while it passes the condenser. This liquefiedrefrigerant is allowed to pass a capillary tube not illustrated anddirected to the heat exchanger 16. In such event, the refrigerantpressure is lowered by the fluid resistance of the capillary tube, therefrigerant expands to vaporize, and deprives itself from heat by thevaporization heat at the heat exchanger 16 inside the industrialrefrigerator-freezer 10 as well as deprives the surrounding from heat tolower its temperature, and thereby lowers the temperature inside therefrigerator-freezer. This is same as the operation inside a regularrefrigerator.

The storage inside of the industrial refrigerator-freezer 10 is formedinto the hermetically sealed container 11 and the door section is builtintegral with the door 14 of the refrigerator 10. To the inside of thishermetically sealed container 11, the shelf board 22 supported by theshelves catch 21 is mounted and foodstuff can be placed. The shelf board22 is of a mesh or grating construction to achieve vertical permeabilityand is intended not to serve as resistance to air flow during exhaustdischarge. When the foodstuff is refrigerated, the foodstuff is storedby being placed on the shelf board 22 of the hermetically sealedcontainer 11. When the door 14 is closed after storing the foodstuff,the packing 23 equipped on the inner side of the door 14 hermeticallyseals the hermetically sealed container 11. Pressing an exhaust switchon the operation panel 15 equipped on the door 14 in advance can detectthe complete closure of the door 14 and at the same time causes theexhaust pump 19 to operate to discharge air inside the hermeticallysealed container 11 via the exhaust duct 20. A switch of the operationpanel 15 equipped on the door 14 may be pressed after storing thefoodstuff to make the exhaust pump 19 operating. By this, the inside ofthe hermetically sealed container 11 is brought to the negativeatmosphere, vacuum state. When the specified negative pressure state isachieved, the exhaust pump 19 automatically stops. The open-close stateof the door 14 can be detected by a detection switch or others mountedon the door 14 side or to the door section of the hermetically sealedcontainer 11.

Because refrigerating the foodstuff in the evacuated hermetically sealedcontainer 11 can prevent oxidation of foodstuff, the freshness offoodstuff can be preserved for a long time and discoloration offoodstuff can be prevented. In particular, when leaf vegetables arestored, since air between leaves is discharged and the moisture contentadhering to the leaf surface vaporizes to deprive them from vaporizationheat, the vegetables can be cooled quickly to the inside and at the sametime the moisture content does not adhere to the leaf surface in theform of ice, and the freshness can be preserved for a long time.

Furthermore, affixing a bio-ceramic element to the wall inside thehermetically sealed container 11 can preserve the freshness of foodstuffmuch longer by the effects of negative ions generated by thebio-ceramic, and the foodstuff can stay fresh for a long time. Theeffect of this bio-ceramic can be semi-permanently maintained.

Now, the hermetically sealed container 11 from which air is oncedischarged cannot be opened easily because of the atmospheric pressure.To solve this problem, in the present embodiment, the vacuum breakerhandle 24 is equipped, and when the door 14 is opened, this handle 24 isoperated and the door is opened after breaking the vacuum first. Anytype and form of a vacuum breaker handle 24 may be used as long as it isof the type which opens the vent passage by operating the handle andcloses the vent passage by returning.

In addition, there is a problem in that convection does not take placewhen air inside the container is lost and cooling is not efficientlycarried out at the time of exhaust discharge and cooling of thehermetically sealed container 11. On the other hand, discharging exhaustafter air inside the container is cooled is a waste of thermal capacityused for cooling the exhausted air. In view of this, it is efficient topromote convention in the stage of comparatively high temperature, anddischarge exhaust after the air lowers to a specified temperature.Consequently, in the present invention, a means for detecting thetemperature of hermetically sealed container 11 is provided and exhaustis discharged when a specified temperature is achieved. Or, contrivancescan be made to prevent the hermetically container from achievingcomplete vacuum after exhausting.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the other embodiment of anindustrial refrigerator-freezer 10 according to the present invention.In FIG. 2, reference numerals 11 a and 11 b denote a hermetically sealedcontainer, 12 housing covering, 13 a heat insulator, 14 a door, 15 anoperation panel, 16 a heat exchanger, 17 a cold air circulating fan, 18a compressor, 19 an exhaust pump, 20 an exhaust duct, 21 a and 21 b ashelves catch, 22 a and 22 b a shelf board, 23 a and 23 b packing, 24 aand 24 b a vacuum breaker handle, 25 a and 25 b a container door, and 26a and 26 b an operating device. For convenience, like referencecharacters designate like or corresponding parts in FIG. 1.

What the present embodiment differs from that shown in FIG. 1 is that aplurality of hermetically sealed containers 11 a, 11 b are equippedinside the refrigerator-freezer. These hermetically sealed containers 11a, 11 b are connected independently to the exhaust duct 20,respectively, and between hermetically sealed containers 11 a, 11 b andthe exhaust duct 20, operating devices 26 a, 26 b are equipped. Tohermetically sealed containers 11 a, 11 b, container doors 25 a, 25 bare equipped, respectively and can be opened and closed independently.To container doors 25 a, 25 b, vacuum breaker handles 24 a, 25 b areequipped, respectively, and can separately break vacuum of hermeticallysealed containers 11 a, 11 b, respectively.

When the foodstuff is refrigerated, the foodstuff is housed in thesehermetically sealed containers 11 a, 11 b, container doors 25 a, 25 bare closed, and hermetically containers 11 a, 11 b to be exhausted aredesignated from the operation panel 15 mounted to the door 14, andexhaustion is directed. By this, the exhaust pump 19 begins exhaustaction and at the same time, the operating device 26 a or 26 b thatconnects the exhaust duct 20 to the directed hermetically sealedcontainer 11 a or 11 b is opened and air in the designated hermeticallysealed container 11 a or 11 b is discharged. By this configuration,hermetically sealed containers 11 with still smaller capacity areindependently controlled, respectively, to refrigerate the foodstuffunder vacuum.

It is possible to reserve the freshness of foodstuff for still longertime by the effects of negative ions by equipping a bio-ceramic elementto the inside of these hermetically sealed containers 11, too.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of another embodiment of industrialrefrigerator-freezer 10 according to the present invention. In FIG. 3,reference numeral 12 denote a housing covering, 13 a heat insulator, 14a door, 16 a heat exchanger, 17 cold air circulating fan, 18 acompressor, 19 an exhaust pump, 20 an exhaust duct, 23 packing, 24 avacuum breaker handle, and 27 a sealed compartment. For convenience,like reference characters designate like or corresponding parts in FIG.1 and FIG. 2.

What the present embodiment differs from those shown in FIG. 1 and FIG.2 is that the storage is replaced by a sealed compartment 27. The sealedcompartment 27 is constructed to be sealed by door 14, and to the door14, a vacuum breaker handle 24 is equipped. To the periphery of thehermetically sealed compartment 27 of the door 14 and to the side withwhich the door of the hermetically sealed compartment 27 comes incontact, packing 23 is mounted to prevent air leakage.

When the foodstuff is refrigerated, housing the foodstuff in thesehermetically sealed compartments 27 and closing the door 14 causes theexhaust pump 19 to automatically start exhaust operation and thehermetically sealed compartment 27 is exhausted. In addition, it ispossible to start discharging exhaust after the temperature inside thehermetically sealed compartment 27 of the storage lowers to a specifiedtemperature. By this, in the stage where the inside temperature iscomparatively high, it is possible to cool he inside by convection ofair inside and the cooling effects can be improved. Furthermore, it ispossible to equip a plurality of heat exchanger 16 in the sealedcompartment 27 to maintain cooling effects even after exhausting. Bythis kind of configuration, a simplified type industrialrefrigerator-freezer 10 with smaller capacity is achieved and thefoodstuff can be refrigerated in vacuum. By the way, the exhaust pump 19may be located outside the housing and externally mounted. To thissealed compartment 27, a bio-ceramic element may be mounted inside as isthe case of the above-mentioned examples, thereby preserving thefoodstuff freshness much longer by the negative ion effects.

In the foregoing description, industrial refrigerator-freezer accordingto the present invention has been described, but the same hermeticallysealing and exhaust configuration can be applied to storage containershoused in cold storages and freezer compartments of cold storages. Thatis, in the storage container, this can be achieved by the constructionsame as the hermetically sealed containers shown in FIG. 2 with anexhaust device equipped to each container, and freezer compartments ofcold storages can be achieved by increasing the size with theconstruction same as that of industrial refrigerator of FIG. 3 adopted.Needless to say, the foodstuff freshness can be preserved still longerby negative ion effects by mounting bio-ceramic elements to the insideof these storage containers and freezer compartments. In addition, toprevent humans and creatures such as dogs and cats from being leftinside the refrigerator storage, temperature sensors that detect theexistence of creatures by the bodily temperature are mounted andrefrigeration function and evacuating function may be stopped in theevent temperature sensors detect the bodily temperature.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of oneembodiment of a household refrigerator 10 according to the presentinvention. In FIG. 4, reference numeral 11-1 through 11-5 denote ahermetically sealed container according to the present invention, 12 ahousing covering, 13 a heat insulator, 14 a door, 14-1 a storage door,14-2 vegetable crisper door, 14-3 and 14-4 freezer compartment doors.Furthermore, reference numeral 16-1 a heat exchanger for storage, 16-2 aheat exchanger of freezer compartment, 17-1 a cold air circulating fanfor storage and 17-2 a cold air circulating fan for freezer compartment,18 a compressor, 19 an exhaust pump, 20 an exhaust duct, 28 an operatingdevice, 29 refrigerator lighting lamp, 30 a storage, 31 a vegetablecrisper, 32 a freezer compartment A, and 33 a freezer compartment B. Forconvenience, like reference characters designate like or correspondingparts in FIG. 1, FIG. 2, and FIG. 3.

In keeping with FIG. 4, operation of the household refrigerator 10 ofthe present invention will be described. The compressor 18 is driven bya motor not illustrated. When the compressor 18 is operated, steam of alow-temperature low-pressure refrigerant which is evaporated by thestorage heat exchangers 16-1 and freezer compartment heat exchanger 16-2is sucked in the compressor 18 and compressed, and acquires temperatureconsiderably higher than room temperature. This steam is allowed to passa condenser not illustrated located outside the refrigerator 10 and todischarge heat. Then, the steam is liquefied while it passes thecondenser. This liquefied refrigerant is allowed to pass a capillarytube not illustrated and directed to the storage heat exchanger 16-1 andfreezer compartment heat exchanger 16-2. In such event, the refrigerantpressure is lowered by the fluid resistance of the capillary tube, therefrigerant expands to vaporize, and deprives itself from heat by thevaporization heat at the storage heat exchanger 16-1 and freezercompartment heat exchanger 16-2 inside the refrigerator 10 as well asdeprives the surrounding from heat to lower its temperature, and therebylowers the temperature inside the refrigerator. This is same as theoperation inside a regular refrigerator.

To the storage 30, vegetable crisper 31, freezer compartment A 32 andfreezer compartment B 33, hermetically sealed containers 11-1 through11-5 are removably mounted. The hermetically sealed containers 11-1through 11-5 are individually connected to exhaust duct 20,respectively, and between hermetically sealed containers 11-1 through11-5 and exhaust duct 20, the operating device 28 is installed. Whenthis operating device 28 is opened, air inside the container isdischarged by the action of exhaust pump 19, the inside of thehermetically sealed containers 11-1 through 11-5 is depressurized andachieves the vacuum condition below atmospheric pressure.

When the foodstuff is refrigerated, the foodstuff is housed in thehermetically sealed containers 11-1 through 11-5, and after thetemperature inside the hermetically sealed containers 11-1 through 11-5is lowered to a certain extent, air inside the hermetically sealedcontainers 11-1 through 11-5 is discharged. When temperature inside thehermetically sealed containers 11-1 through 11-5 is lowered, whiletemperature is comparatively high, it is effective to cool by the use ofconvection of air inside. Consequently, in this stage, air inside thehermetically sealed containers 11-1 through 11-5 is not discharged butthe temperature inside the hermetically sealed containers 11-1 through11-5 is monitored and the air is discharged when the air temperaturelowers to a certain extent. Or the covers of the hermetically sealedcontainers 11-1 through 11-5 are closed and air is discharged with aspecified time provided after the exhaust is directed.

Because refrigerating the foodstuff in the evacuated hermetically sealedcontainer 11 in this way can prevent oxidation of foodstuff, thefreshness of foodstuff can be preserved for a long time anddiscoloration of foodstuff can be prevented. In addition, when leafvegetables are preserved in the hermetically sealed container 11-3 ofthe vegetable crisper 31, since air between leaves is discharged and themoisture content adhering to the leaf surface is likely to vaporize anddeprives them from vaporization heat, the vegetables can be cooledquickly to the inside, and are difficult to lose the freshness. Inaddition, when pieces of ice made in hermetically sealed containers11-4, 11-5 of the freezer compartment A 32 and freezer compartment B 33or frozen foodstuff are preserved, it is possible to prevent ice piecesand frozen foodstuff from being stuck each other due to moisture in air,and they can be handled easily.

By the way, affixing a bio-ceramic element to the wall inside thehermetically sealed containers 11-1 through 11-5 as is the case ofabove-mentioned examples can preserve the freshness of foodstuff muchlonger by the effects of negative ions.

The operating device 28 can be opened and closed by a panel switch notillustrated, which is mounted, for example, to the surface of therefrigerator proper 10. In such event, by allowing the operating device28 to open only when it recognizes that hermetically sealed containers11-1 through 11-5 are connected to the corresponding connection ends ofthe exhaust duct 20 and not to open when they are not connected, theexhaust pump 19 can be prevented from making unnecessary exhaust action.

Now, because the hermetically sealed containers 11-1 through 11-5 fromwhich air is once discharged cannot be opened easily because of theatmospheric pressure, a handle not illustrated for breaking vacuum ismounted to each of hermetically sealed containers 11-1 through 11-5 andwhen the exhausted hermetically sealed containers 11-1 through 11-5 areopened, the vacuum breaker handle is used to break vacuum before openingthe containers.

Now, for the refrigerator 10, a motor is necessary to operate thecompressor 18. This motor for compressor is not continuously operatedbut intermittently operated only when the refrigerator inside must becooled. Consequently, the motor for compressor can be used also as themotor for driving the exhaust pump 19, and by this, the device can befabricated less expensively and in a smaller size.

In the foregoing description, it was described that the hermeticallysealed containers 11-1 through 11-5 are connected to the exhaust duct 20and exhausted by the same exhaust pump 19. However, it is also possibleto provide a simplified exhaust means to each of the hermetically sealedcontainers 11-1 through 11-5 and to evacuate air from the hermeticallysealed containers 11-1 through 11-5. FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectional viewof another embodiment of the household refrigerator 10 with suchconfiguration according to the present invention.

In FIG. 5, for convenience sake, like reference characters designatelike or corresponding parts in FIG. 4.

What the present embodiment differs from that shown in FIG. 4 is thatthe exhaust system 35-1 through 35-5 is installed to each ofhermetically sealed containers 11-1 through 11-5, respectively. Theexhaust system 35-1 through 35-5 comprises a small exhaust pump, blower,and others. The power supply of exhaust systems 35-1 through 35-5 may betaken, for example, from outlets provided inside the refrigerator andexhaust systems 35-1 through 35-5 may be turned on/off by the switchmounted to the cover portion of the exhaust system 35-1 through 35-5.

In the present embodiment, too, air inside the hermetically sealedcontainers 11-1 through 11-5 may be discharged when the air temperatureinside the hermetically sealed containers 11-1 through 11-5 lowers to acertain degree or with the cover of the hermetically sealed containers11-1 through 11-5 closed and with a specified time provided after theexhaust is directed. In addition, in such event, too, a bio-ceramicelement may be mounted inside the hermetically sealed containers 11-1through 11-5 as is the case of the above-mentioned examples, therebypreserving the foodstuff freshness much longer by the negative ioneffects.

Although the household refrigerator-freezer according to the presentinvention has been described in keeping with the embodiment, it isunderstood that the present invention may be embodied in several formswithout departing from the spirit of essential characteristics thereof.For example, in the embodiments of FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, one each of heatexchanger is mounted to each of the freezer compartment and the storage,respectively, but needless to say, one heat exchanger may be used andthe refrigerator is of a type to separate the freezer compartment andthe storage in accord with the cold air circulating position.Furthermore, though no detailed description has been made, variouschanges and modifications may be made in the size and shape of thehermetically sealed container, mounting position of the exhaust duct orexhaust system, etc. without departing from the spirit and scopethereof.

1. A refrigerator-freezer which has one or a plurality of storages and acooling means for cooling the storages, comprising: hermetically sealedcontainers installed inside the storages to store foods to berefrigerated/frozen; an exhaust means for individually discharge exhaustof the hermetically sealed containers; and a switching means for turningON/OFF the exhaust means.
 2. The refrigerator-freezer according to claim1 wherein a vacuum breaking means for breaking the vacuum conditionafter discharging exhaust by the exhaust means is provided for thehermetically sealed containers.
 3. The refrigerator-freezer according toclaim 1 wherein an open-close detection means for detecting open-closeof container door section is provided to the hermetically sealedcontainers.
 4. The refrigerator-freezer according to claim 1 furthercomprising a temperature detection means for detecting temperatureinside the hermetically sealed container, wherein the exhaust meansdischarges exhaust after the temperature detection means detects thatthe temperature inside the hermetically sealed container lowers to thespecified value.
 5. The refrigerator-freezer according to claim 1wherein a bio-ceramic element which has bioactivity for generatingnegative ions is located inside the hermetically sealed container.
 6. Arefrigerator-freezer which has a plurality of storages and a coolingmeans for cooling the storages, comprising: hermetically sealedcontainers installed inside the storages to store foods to berefrigerated and frozen; connection ends mounted to the storages;exhaust ducts that can be connected to the hermetically sealedcontainers by the connection ends; a common exhaust means fordischarging exhaust of the hermetically sealed containers connected tothe exhaust duct via the connection ends by discharging exhaust insidethe exhaust duct; and an operating device for operating connectionsbetween the hermetically sealed containers and the exhaust duct.
 7. Therefrigerator according to claim 6 wherein the operating means does notopen the connection between the hermetically sealed containers and theexhaust duct when the hermetically sealed containers are not connectedto the connection ends of the exhaust duct.
 8. The refrigeratoraccording to claim 6 further comprising a temperature detection meansfor detecting the temperature inside the hermetically sealed containerwherein the operating means opens the connection between thehermetically sealed containers and the exhaust duct after detecting thatthe temperature inside the hermetically sealed container lowers to thespecified value.
 9. The refrigerator-freezer according to claim 6wherein a vacuum breaking means for breaking the vacuum condition afterexhaust by the exhaust means is mounted to the hermetically sealedcontainers.
 10. The refrigerator-freezer according to claim 6 wherein abio-ceramic element which has bioactivity to generate negative ions islocated inside the hermetically sealed containers.
 11. Arefrigerator-freezer which has one or a plurality of storages and acooling means for cooling the storages, which are formed into ahermetically sealed construction, comprising: an exhaust means fordischarging exhaust of the storages of the hermetically sealedconstruction.
 12. The refrigerator-freezer according to claim 11 whereina vacuum breaking means for breaking the vacuum condition after theexhaust means discharges exhaust is equipped to the storage.
 13. Therefrigerator-freezer according to claim 11 wherein the exhaust meanswaits until the temperature inside the storages lowers to the specifiedtemperature and carries out the exhaust operation.
 14. Therefrigerator-freezer according to claim 11 wherein an open-closedetection means for detecting the open-close of the storage door isinstalled to the storage.
 15. The refrigerator-freezer according toclaim 11 wherein the cooling means has a plurality of heat exchangersinside the storage.
 16. The refrigerator-freezer according to claim 11wherein a bio-ceramic element which has bioactivity to generate negativeions is located inside the storage.
 17. A storage container used forstoring reserves in a cold storage, comprising: a hermetically sealingmeans for hermetically sealing the storage containers, an exhaust meansfor individually discharging exhaust of the storage containers, and aswitching means for turning ON/OFF the exhaust means.
 18. The storagecontainer according to claim 17 wherein a vacuum breaking means forbreaking the vacuum condition after exhaust is discharged by the exhaustmeans is equipped to the storage containers.
 19. The storage containeraccording to claim 17 wherein a bio-ceramic element which hasbioactivity to generate negative ions is located inside the storagecontainers.
 20. A cold storage which has a freezer compartment that canrefrigerate and store preserves in the warehouse, comprising: ahermetically sealing means for hermetically sealing the freezercompartment, an exhaust means for individually discharging exhaust ofthe freezer compartment, and a switching means for turning ON/OFF theexhaust means.
 21. The cold storage according to claim 20 wherein avacuum breaking means for breaking the vacuum condition after exhaust isdischarged by the exhaust means is equipped to the freezer compartment.22. The storage container according to claim 20 wherein a bio-ceramicelement which has bioactivity to generate negative ions is locatedinside the freezer compartment.
 23. The storage container according toclaim 20 wherein a temperature sensor for detecting the existence ofhumans or living organisms by temperature is mounted inside the freezercompartment.